Rail anchor



July 30, 1929.

C. G. I ERICSON RAIL ANCHOR Filed Sept. 19. 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 N VE/V TOR i a a ATTORNEY I July 30, 1929. c. G. ERICSON RAIL ANCHOR Filed Sept. 19. 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 I 1&

' I j I/E/VTOR 1-4 TTO R N E Y Fig.5

Patented July so, 1929.

UNITED STAT GHARLIE'Ifi G. ERICSON, OF TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA.

RAIL ANCHOR.

Application filed September 19, 1928. Serial No. 306,828.

The present invention relates to rail an-' chors used to prevent the longitudinal creeping of rails, and more particularly to anchors of the one-piece type which are constructed to be sprung into firm gripping engagement with the rail base. I

It is'well known to those familiar with the present day track problems that with the introduction of heavier rolling stock and.

the rail anchor of today should be capable of resisting a greater creeping force imparted to the rails by the heavier and faster moving rolling stock, and therefore should possess increased strength and rail gripping properties. A further requirement of such rail anchor is that it shall be cheap, which necessitates economy in the material and labor utilized in its production. Such anchor should also be so constructed that it is easy to apply and remove from the rail, while at the same time all danger of the anchor working loose from the rail under the vibrations imparted to the tracks by the trains and of working lengthwise of the rail should be avoided.

Having the above requirements in mind, the present invention relates toa one-piece rail anchor of exeremely powerful construction, which, while sufiiciently rugged in construction to withstand the greatest strains to which it is likely to be subjected, at the same time is sufiiciently resilient to maintain a constant spring-gripping action upon the iii rail, whereby all danger of the anchor becoming accidentally disengaged from the rail or shifted lengthwise thereof is avoided.

Many forms of one-piece rail anchors have been proposed heretofore, bothof the resilient and nonresilient type, and such rail anchors commonly consist of a bar or shank adapted to extend across the under face of the rail, and at each end of the bar or shank the anchor after it is placed'in engagement with the rail, but such anchors are obviously "difli'cult to apply to andremove from the rail. In other types having a-rigid 'nonresilient construction, the rail anchor is shifted to different positions diagonally of the rail to facilitate its application to the rail and is held in gripping engagement with the rail by its engagement with a tie, but this type of rail anchor is open to the objection that the anchor tends to work loose when its pressure against the tie decreases. The resilient types of one-piece rail anchors proposed heretofore in most cases are not suficiently strong and rigid to withstand 1,7z2, 5 67 P FFICE.

the heavy forces to which they are-likelyto be subjected under modern uses. I

The present invention seeks to provide a rail anchor which while fulfilling the above requirements will avoid the various objections above pointed out, and one important feature of the present invention resides in a one-piece rail anchor which is so constructed that one end of the shank which extends under the rail base flange is entirely free from projections adapted to extend over the upper face of the base flange to maintain rail anchor in place. As a result of this construction the present rail anchor is easy to apply to and remove from the rail.

This desirable feature of the present invention is secured by making the shank ofthe rail anchor sufficiently heavy and by providing the shank at one end with an extremely strong upwardly turned end portion that clears the edge of the rail and which is provided with a wide jaw that engages the upper face of the rail base flange some distance from the edge of the rail and with sufficient force to hold the shank rigidly against the under face of the rail.

A further feature of the present invention resides in the construction .whereby the shank of the rail anchor constitutes the tie abutting element and this shank is therefore preferably made rectangular in cross-section and projects downwardly a substantial distance from the lower face of the rail to provide a large tie-engaging face.

A further feature of the invention resides in the construction whereby the ra1l anchor is provided at one end of its shank with a strong arm that extends laterally from the.

resides in the novel construction whereby the clamping jaw at one end of the rail an chor constitutes the only por 'on the anchor that engages the upper face of the rail base flange, while the abutment at the end of the laterally extending arm of the anchor constitutes the only portion of the anchor that engages an edge of the rail, and asa result of this construction the rail anchor is not only easy to apply to and remove from the rail, but the arm carrying end portion of the shank may-swing lengthwise of the I rail sufficiently to accommodate the anchor to the different forces to which it may be subjected while in use.

Other features of the invention in addition to'the above will be hereinafter described in connection with the accompanying drawings which illustrate one good practical form of the invention.

In the drawings: i

Fig. l is'a vertical section through a rail showing a rail anchor constructed in accord- 30 ance wlth the present lnvention secured thereto;

Fig." 2 is a top plan view of a portion of a rail having the rail anchor of Fig. 1 secured thereto in abutting engagement with a tie;

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2 but shows the rail anchor as shifted upon the rail to an abnormal position;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of parts shown in Fig. 2; and

Fig. 5 is a vertical sectional View through a rail showing a slightly modified type of rail anchor in position to be applied to the rai Referring to the drawings, 10 is the wheel engaging portion of a rail of usualconstruction, 11 is the rail base which is connected to the portion 10 by the upstanding flange 12 and the rail base is provided with the usual tapered flanged portions 13.

The rail anchor forming the subjectmatter of the present invention consists" of aheavy shank 14 adapted to extend slightly diagonally across the rail base 11 in abutting engagement with the under face thereof, and this shank 14 is provided at one end with a heavy, non-yielding, up-

turned portion 15 adapted to extend over a flange portion 13 of the rail base, and is provided with .a wide jaw 16 constructed to firmly engage the flange portion 13 at some distance from the edge 17 of the rail and to hold the upper face of the shank 14 firmly against the under face of the rail base 11. The upturned portion '15 of the rail anchor it should be noted is provided at its inner curved face with a clearance space 18 adapted to entirely clear the rail edge '17. It will be seen as a result of the construction just described that when the jaw 16 is forced into firm gripping engagement with the tapered flange 13 of the rail base, the pressure of this jaw upon the upper face of the rail basewill hold the shank 14 so firmly against the under face of the rail base that the latter will not be canted or twisted out of the vertical plane in which it lies by the pressure of the rail supporting tie 19 against this shank.

The present rail anc 'or is provided at the opposite end of the sha k 14 with a slightly resilient arcuate arm 20 which extends laterally from the shank 14, and the outer end of this arcuate arm constitutes an abutment 21 adapted to rest against the rail edge 17 as clearly shown in Fig. 2 of the drawing. In the construction shown, the entire arcuate arm 20 is oflset or lifted slightly with respect to the rail anchor shank 14 and the outer end portion of this arcuate arm is twisted upwardly somewhat, as best shown in Fig. 1, this upward-twist being imparted to the arm 20 to cause the abutting face 21 thereof to be disposed sufliciently above the upper edge of the shank 14 to'rest firmly against the rail edge 17 without projecting into overlapping relation with said edge, as will be apparent from Fig. 1. The arcuate construction of the laterally extending arm 20 serves not only to relieve the arm from sharp bends that might constitute a source of weakness butprovides also the curved clearance space 22 at 'the inner face of this arm andwhi'ch is adapted 'to receive the end of a track bar orother tool which may be inserted inthe clearance space 22 to exert a prying action against the rail edge to facilitate application of the rail anchor to the rail. I

The rail anchor of the present invention is applied to the rail by placing the shank 14 of the rail anchor beneath the rail and the jaw 16 in engagement with the upper face of the rail base, as shown in Fig. 5. The jaw 16 is then driven into firm gripping engagement with the rail base by striking upon the outer curved face of the upwardly turned portion 15 with a hammer or the like to force the rail anchor in a lefthand direction, viewing Fig. 1, and while this is being done a prying action should beexerted upon the arcuate arm 20 by inserting a track bar or the like in the cle'arance space 22, as above mentioned. As the rail anchor is forced in a left-hand direction by the blows and prying action, they jaw 16 will exert a tremendous upward pressure upon the shank 14 and this will cause the outer end of the arcuate arm 20' to spring upwardly into abutting engagement with the edge-17 of the rail as soon as the outer ing a bellied construction, such torsional end of this arm has been forced in a" lefthand direction sufliciently-to clear the under face of the rail.

When the rail anchor has been applied to a rail by forcing the arm 20 outwardly, as above described, the constant tendency of this arm to spring back to its normal osition will hold the end 21 of thew firm gripping engagement with the rail edge 17 and will maintain the jaw 16 in engagement with the rail base, and this in turn will hold the shank 14rigidly against the under face of the rail to thereby prevent the arcuate arm 20 from moving downwardly; the construction being such that the rail anchor is held in firm gripping engagement with the rail base with the end 21 of the arcuate arm disposed at one side of a vertical plane wa passing through the central portion of the jaw 16, while the major portion .of the shank 14 lies at the opposite side of this plane.

As above stated, the present rail anchor is so constructed that the shank 14 constitutes a tie engaging element, and the rail anchor is designed to be applied to therail so that any creeping action of the rail in the direction in which a train travels, that is, in the direction indcated by the arrow in Fig. 2, will serve to force the shank 14 of the rail anchor against the tie 19. The pressure of the rail anchor against the tie in this direction will serve to decrease the diagonal slope of the shank 14; that is, this pressure of the rail anchor against the tie will tend to shift the left-hand portion of the shank 14, viewing Fig. 2, towards the plane a-a, and any movement of the shank 14 in this direction will obviously increase the pressure ofthe outer end of the arm 20 against the rail edge 17, thus increasing the gripping action of the rail anchor upon the rail to prevent the same from slipping lengthwise of the rail as the pressure of the anchor against the tie increases. x

The shank 14 of the rail anchor is preferably made rectangular in cross-section and extends downwardly a substantial distance from the under face ofthe rail base 11 to present a large surface adapted to abut against the tie 19. As above stated, the entire rail anchor is exceptionally heavy and rugged in construction and the upwardly bent portion 15 thereof is so rigid in construction that the overhanging jaw 16, due to the large area of its rail engaging surface and also to the rigidity of the portion 15 and shank 14, will prevent an appreciable torsional twist from being imparted to the shank 14 by the pressure of the tie 19 against a vertical face of this shank. Should the pressure of the rail anchor against a tie exert tie against which the rail anchor rests havtwist will simply serve to spring the arm 20 upward slightly with respect to the rail edge 17 and if desired this upward movement of the arm 20 may be limited by providing the outer end 21 thereof with a shoulder 23, such as shown .in the modified construction of Fig. 5, which shoulder will engage the under face of the rail base to limit this upward movement of the arm 20.'

The pressure with which the shank 14 is held against the lower face of the rail base 11 by the overhanging jaw 16 will normally prevent the left-hand e (1 portion of the shank 14 from being shi ted lengthwise of the rail under the reaction of the tensioned arm 20, even when the movement of the shank in this direction is not opposed by a tie 19; but should the shank of the rail anchor be shifted in this direction, the swinging movement of the shank lengthwise of the rail may be arrested by providing the lefthand end portion of the shank'with an upwardly extending'shoulder 24 adapted to en gage the rail edge 17 and limit the swinging movement of the shank in this direction, as will be apparent from. Fig. 3. This shoulder 24, it will be understood, it normally inactive and usually lies in spaced relation to the rail edge 17 as will be apparent from Fig. 2 of the drawing, and comes into play only when the rail anchor has been subjected to a retrograde movement that has shifted the rail anchor to the position in which it is shown in Fig. 3.

The entire rail anchor is so strong and rigid in construction that it will not bend appreciably under the heaviest strains to which it is likely to be subjected in resist,

ingthe creeping action of a rail, while at the same time the laterally extending arm 20 may be sprung outwardly during the application of the rail anchor to the rail sufiiciently to cause the rail anchor to maintain a constant gripping action upon the rail.

It will be apparent from the foregoing that the present rail anchor is extremely simple in construction and therefore can be manufactured at low cost; it will also be apparent that it may be easily applied to and removed from the rail, and when once applied to the rail is maintained in place by a constant spring pressure that prevents all possibility of the rail anchor being accidentally disengaged from the rail. It will also be seen that the pressure of the rail anchor against the tie under creeping action of the rail serves to increase the pressure of the outer end of the arm 20 against the rail edge to thereby prevent the rail anchor from slipping lengthwise of the rail. It will be seen, also, that the present rail anchor may be repeatedlyapplied to and removed from rails without injuring the rail anchor, or perto abut against a tie and provided at 'one'end with a heavy overhanging jaw constructed to clear the edge of the rail and to engage the upper face of the rail base at a substantial distance from the rail edge and acting to hold the shank firmly against the rail base, and. provided at its opposite end with a laterally extending arcuate portion the end of which bears against the rail edge in non-overhanging relation with the rail base and held by the opposite heavy overhanging jaw from moving downwardly out of engagement with the rail edge.

2. A one piece rail anchor consisting of a shank adapted to extend across the rail base to form the tie engaging element and provided with a heavy overhanging jaw constructed to clear the edge of the rail and to engage the upper face of the rail base at a substantial distance from said edge and acting to hold the shank firmly against the rail base, and provided at its opposite end with a laterally extending arm the terminal end of which abuts against the'edge of the rail at a point distant from the shank in the direction of the on-coming traflic without projecting inwardly over the rail base.

3. A one piece rail anchor consisting of a shank adapted to extend across the rail base to form the tie engagingelement and provided with a heavy overhanging jaw constructed to clear the edge of the rail and to engage the upper face of the rail base at a substantial distance from said edge' and normally acting to hold the shank firmly against the rail base, and bent at its opposite end into an arm curved in the directionof the on-coming traffic, the end of which is held elevated above the lower face of the rail and in abutting engagement withthe edge of the rail by the opposite heavy overhanging jaw acting through the shank.

4. A one piece rail anchor consisting of a shank adapted to extend across the rail base to form the tie engaging element and provided with "a heavy overhanging jaw constructed to clear the edge of the rail and to engage the upper face of the rail base at a substantial distance fromsaid dge and normally acting to hold the shank firmly against the rail base, and provided at itsopposite end with a laterally extending curved arm of slight resiliency due to its curvature that extends away from the tie engaged by said shank and the end of which is held in abutting engagement with the edge of'the rail'by the shank. 1

5. A one piece rail anchor consistingv a shank adapted to extend diagonally across the upper face of the rail base with sulficient upward force to. maintain the shank against the lower face of the rail with a constant pressure that prevents the arcuate arm from moving downwardly out of engagement with the rail edge.

6. A-one piece rail anchor consisting of a shank adapted to extend across the rail base to form the tie engaging element and provided atone end with an overhanging jaw that bears against the upper face of the rail base and at its oposite end with a laterally extending arm the end of which abuts against the edge of the rail, and the construction being such that said jaw constitutes the only portion of the anchor that 7 A one piece rail anchor consisting of a shank adapted to extend across the rail base and provided at one end with an overhanging jaw that bears against the upper face of the rail base and at its opposite end with a laterally extending arm the end of which abuts against the rail edge, and the construction beihg such that said overhanging jaw constitutes the only portion of the anchor that engages the upper face of the base flange while the end of said laterally extending arm constitutes the only portion of" the anchor that engages an edge of the rail.

8. A one piece rail anchor consisting of a shank'adapted to extend across the rail base and having one end portion bent upwardly to clear the edge'of the rail and toform an overhanging jaw that engages the upper face of the rail base, and having its opposite end portion bent laterally to form a slightly resilient arm the end of which is adapted to engage the, edge of the rail and to press thereagainst with a' force that increases as the pressure against the shank is increased in a direction to decrease theinclination of the shank to a transverse plane of the rail. M

9. A one piece rail anchor, comprising a strong heavy forging" having a heavy shank that is incapable of elongating in the direction of its length or of bending while in use and constructed to extend diagonally across the rail base and to serve as the tie abutting member, and having one end bent upwardly to form a strong overhanging jaw adapted to engage the upper face of the rail base and having its opposite end bent to form a slightly resilient arm that extends away from the tie against which said shank abuts and the end of which rests against the edge of the rail.

10. A one piece rail anchor, comprising a strong heavy. shank constructed to extend across the rail base and toserve as the tie abutting member, and having one end constructed to form a heavy overhanging jaw having a wide face adapted to rest firmly upon the upper sloping face of the rail base, and having its opposite end bent laterally away from the tie against which the shank abuts to form a resilient arm having an abutment that rests against the rail edge.

11. A one piece rail anchor comprising a shank constructed to extend diagonally of the rail in engagement with the under face thereof and to serve as the tie abutting member, and having one end portion bent laterally away from the tie engaged by the shank to form a slightly resilient arm the end of which rests against an edge of the rail, and having its opposite end portion bent upwardly to form a strong overhanging jaw adapted to engage the upper face of the rail base and hold the shank against the under face of the rail with suificient force to prevent the arm carrying end of the shank from being displaced longitudinally of the rail by the reaction of the normal tension of the arm upon the shank.

12. A one piece rail anchor comprising a straight shank constructed to extend diagonally across the rail base to form the tie engaging element and having one end portion bent upwardly to form a strong overhanging jaw adapted to engage the upper face of the rail base,- and a rail engaging part formed at the opposite end of the shank and comprising a laterally extending arm having an end adapted to be maintained in abutment with the edge only of the rail base.

13. A one piece rail anchor consisting ofa strong heavy shank adapted to extend across and rest against the lower face of the rail base and to project downwardly therefrom far enough to form a large tie abutting surface, and provided with anend portion that is bent upwardly to form a large overhanging aw that is adapted to grip'the rail flange with suificient rigidity to prevent a torsional twist from being imparted tothe shank by the pressure of a tie against a lateral face thereof, and the shank being provided at its opposite end with a laterally extending arm the end of which is' constructed to abut against an edge of the rail' and hold saidjaw outer end of which is adapted to abut against I the edge of the rail.

15. A resilient one piece rail anchor consisting of a shank adapted to extend across the rail base to form the tie engaging element and provided at one end with a strong overhanging jaw that bears upon the upper face of the rail base at a substantial distance from the rail edge and adapted to retain the shank against the under face of the rail base with sufficient force to hold the opposite end of the shank from moving longitudinally of the rail under the reaction of a tensioned laterally extending spring arm, a normally inactive shoulder formed at the last mentioned end of said shank and adapted to engage the rail edge only when a retrograde movement is imparted to that end of the shank, and a resilient arm extending laterally from the shouldered portion of the shank and having an outer end that abuts against the rail edge.

16. A resilient one piece rail anchor consisting of a shank adapted to extend across the rail base to form the tie engaging element and provided with a heavy overhanging jaw constructed to engage the upper face of the rail base at a substantial distance from said edge to hold. the shank firmly against the rail base, the shank being provided at its opposite end with a laterally extending resilient arm the end of which is adapted to abut against the rail edge, and said arm being provided at its outer end with a shoulder adapted toengage the under face of the rail to arrest the upward move- 

